I think that the following five are the most relevant for the balance of this year and into 2014.

Photo Credit: Landor Associates

1. Gamification
Gamification is poised to be as important this year as social and mobile were in the past, according to Jason Bice, Landor’s senior manager of verbal branding. “Gamification could be considered the third component of a new ‘holy trinity’ of digital marketing,” Bice says. The question that all small-business owners must ask is: How do I turn a virtual achievement in a real one?

Find out the answer and more about Bice’s take on Gamification here.

2. Brand Purpose
Landor’s Chief Marketing Officer Hayes Roth, believes brand purpose should be a part of your company’s very foundation. “There’s been a lot of talk about whether or not this is just another way to speak about brand positioning,” he says. “Is it a dressed-up version of what we’ve always done, or is it about something more important? We believe that it’s about something more important.”

Read about what Roth said at a recent  Association of National Advertisers (ANA) annual meeting and to find out his take on authenticity.

3. Future of Packaging
If you’re a product company, think “on-the-go” and “single serving.” According to Landor Executive Creative Director Philip VanDusen and Senior Design Realization Director Anne Reid, packaging trends need to keep pace with, or stay ahead of, our mobile culture. Twenty percent of meals in the U.S. are eaten in the car, and 27 percent of U.S. households are single-person—sociodemographic shifts with big implications for how companies must package and display their wares.

See examples of pyschographic shifts and “sensory packaging” given by Reid.

4. Data Visualization
Landor Managing Director Suzie Ivelich, believes that data visualization is the future and points to companies like Google, IBM and GE, which are diving into data visualization. According to Ivelich, data visualization is all about value and engaging customer with data that they want to engage with.

Learn how Ivelich links data visualization with value.

5. Simplicity, Storytelling and Passion
Ian Wood, Landor’s global strategy director, argues that these elements must figure centrally into any successful brand, well beyond 2013.

Wood argues that branding, like leadership, is about driving changes, which in turn requires creating passion in people. “The currency of brands is passion,” he explains.

The burning question this year, Wood believes, is: “How can we make brands more about consequence and outputs and less about inputs? Simplicity, passion, and storytelling—these are the ways that we can get brands to be more effective and drive business results.”

Read more on this topic here.

If you’ve allowed your brand to slip from your number one marketing priority, this is the time to take a closer look at how global trends will begin to impact you in the marketplace.  Work with your Agency or trusted consultant to conduct a brand audit and begin your strategic planning for 2014.  Your investment is too great to allow even a short passage of time to erode the equity you’ve built into your brand. Don’t you agree?

Facebook Advertising for recruitment has become an integral part of recruitment advertising strategies across the board. Why has the field of recruitment gravitated towards Facebook advertising so quickly? The reason is twofold.

Why Recruiters use Facebook Ads:

1. The insanely high volume of traffic (approx. 152.4M visitors / month)
2. The unique targeting options it offers to advertisers.

And with the recent release of “Partner Categories” targeting, Facebook has taken it’s ad targeting to a whole new level.

Facebook’s New Ad Targeting

By combining both online and offline consumer behavior data (courtesy of Acxiom, Epsilon, and Datalogix), Facebook developed over 500 unique groups of Facebook users. Each represents an audience segment based on demographics, psycho-graphics, spending patterns, and everything in between as Facebook Ad targeting options. As a result, over one billion Facebook users are broken down into simple, highly targeted audiences.

How Will This Impact Recruitment Advertising?

Using Facebook Ads for social recruiting is now easier and more powerful than ever before. Why? Because Recruiters now have a direct line of communication to audience segments based on occupation, field/industry, earnings, and other recruitment specific dimensions. Not only can you choose one of these groups, you can apply another layer of targeting by adding any of the original Facebook categories and/or targeting criteria. The result: extremely powerful, multi-dimensional targeting.

Recruitment Specific Targeting Examples

Let’s pretend for a minute that you are a Talent Acquisition Leader in the healthcare industry. You just began the process of reviewing your Veteran recruitment strategy for next quarter, and need to fill 10 positions in San Francisco, California. To increase awareness and exposure online, you’re evaluating Facebook as a marketing medium.

With Facebook’s new Partner Categories, you can isolate your ideal audience by selecting the following targeting options:

Geo-Targeting & Age:

• San Francisco, California
• 22 to 50 years old

Partner Categories:  

• Acxiom > Job Role > Medical Professional category
• Acxiom > Lifestyles & Interestes > Donate to Veteran Causes

Advanced Options:

• Education > College Grads

As a result, you have a target audience of around 13,600 Facebook users who self-identify as a medical professional and show interest in Veteran causes. Keep in mind, this is just one combination and does not add the layer of traditional Facebook targeting such as likes/interests, connections, etc.

Next Steps…

At this point, there isn’t enough data out there to determine if  Partner Categories are more or less effective when it comes to Facebook advertising for recruitment. However, it appears to be a giant leap in the right direction.

As an online marketing professional, I am ecstatic to have a targeting tool that marries online and offline consumer behavior. As a consumer, knowing that this information is readily available to advertisers creeps me out a bit. What do you think? 

Ready to Improve Your Facebook Advertising ROI?

To lean more about how Partner Categories can improve the effectiveness of your Facebook advertising dollars, contact a Recruitment PPC Specialist at KRT Marketing.

At a recent conference, Mayer defended her decision saying, “…people are more productive when they’re alone, but they’re more collaborative and innovative when they’re together. Some of the best ideas come from pulling two different ideas together.”

While there was certainly some pushback from many employees, I found it interesting that an outpouring of ex-Yahoos confessed that it was the right decision. Former Yahoo! ad tech executive Michael Katz summed it up best:

“The value in human interaction is greater collective wisdom as a result of improved communication & collaboration.”

Here at KRT, the “Work from Home” request is one that my business partner and I get often. Our stance has always been the same: everyone comes into the office.

As a mid-sized Agency that has experienced steady growth over the last decade, one of the biggest challenges we face is how to foster continued collaboration amongst the team. Our clients turn to us for essentially two things: great ideas and flawless execution — neither of which can happen in a vacuum.

It goes without saying that the best concepts come out of spirited group discussion and brainstorming sessions in an on-site environment. However, many would argue that the “execution” piece can be easily accomplished in remote settings. I disagree.

Even though we operate in small teams here at KRT, the account management side of what we do requires that all parties be fully synched at all times — after all, email exchanges, phone calls and IMs will only get you so far. Most problems are easily solved by getting off your butt and walking over to your teammate’s desk…look at their monitor…see what they’re seeing…hash it out, together. It’s amazing, too, how accountability is heightened when you have to actually see someone to explain why you didn’t make your deadline.

While I know my stance on working from home is not always the popular opinion amongst our team, it has certainly been effective for this firm. There have been countless instances over the years when we’ve won accounts from our competitors simply because they “couldn’t get their act together” according to the client. The common thread amongst these other agencies is that they’re typically larger in size with dispersed teams scattered across the country.

It’s not that I don’t trust that individuals would work hard from home. I know they would. But I also know that we ALL work BETTER by surrounding ourselves with fellow Advertising All-Stars. Plus, we do tend to have a bit of fun when we’re together, as documented by some teammates in recent blog posts: March Madness at the Workplace and The Benefits of Fun in the Workplace.

Agree or disagree with my take? Let me hear from you either way…

Thanks to Generation Y, expectations in the work place have evolved with greater significance placed on work-life balance. Moreover, 88% of Millenials want their coworkers to be their friends. So if you want happy employees coming to the office saying “what can I do for the company today,” you’re going to have to do more than provide a 401k and dental plan.

What are the benefits of providing this “fun” factor exactly? Isn’t this just detracting from productivity? No!

The following list published by Peter Barron Stark in his article “Your Customers Care About Your Employees (Almost As Much as You Do),” sums up what employee satisfaction surveys have shown for years:

• Happy employees are more motivated to give better service (side note: And more motivated to refer future hires to your company! And LIKE you on social media!)
• Companies that commit to training and providing the right resources for their employees have employees who better serve their customers
• When employees feel valued and recognized, they are more motivated to go above and beyond
• Companies that trust their employees and empower them to make good decisions have more satisfied, loyal customers

How does this affect your bottom line? Stark goes on:

1. Happy employees translates to happier customers who return more frequently, positively impacting the bottom line.
2. More than ever, today’s consumers are aware of an organization’s commitment to being socially responsible and will vote accordingly with their dollars. And these days, you can file employee treatment under social responsibility.

As with most things, senior management is encouraged to lead by example. Participate in the fun you want to encourage, and be the change you want to see in your office.

Tell us how you incorporate fun into your office environment. Need some ideas? KRT Marketing gurus are here to help incorporate fun into your next campaign!

Over the past three decades, one particular story has circulated about the band’s outrageous contract rider demands.  The now infamous demand was hidden deeply inside the pages of the contract, and stated that brown M&M’s were strictly forbidden backstage.

If even a single brown M&M was found among the numerous requested bowls of candy, the show would be cancelled and the promoter would be stuck with the bill.  As crazy as it sounds, this was actually an incredibly savvy safety measure.  David Lee Roth and the boys knew that if the promoter ignored the brown M&M request, then the critical details, like the elaborate staging, electrical system and all of the other technical specifics of the show, were also at risk, posing a safety hazard.

Whether it’s rock n’ roll, marketing, or any industry, details matter, and grammar is reflective of those details. It’s often assumed that an individual who has poor spelling skills and ignores punctuation may make the same mistakes when on the job, a situation which can cost a company dearly.  Customers, colleagues and business people at all levels appreciate correct grammar. The appropriate use of grammar gives a person more credibility and indicates a high level of professionalism.

We all need help in this area from time to time, and luckily there are numerous resources available.  I often refer to my favorite grammar sites, Grammar Girl and Grammar Bytes to save me from accidentally serving my clients a grammatical brown M&M.

For more on the story of Van Halen and the brown M&M’s, check out this bit from “Diamond Dave”, Mr. David Lee Roth.

Nevertheless, at KRT Marketing, we see March Madness as a time to come together and promote employee bonding (during our lunch hour, of course).

Here’s some of our team yesterday rooting on the Saint Mary’s Gaels!

Tell us how your company celebrate March Madness?

The seven golden rules, provided by The Brand Factory, remind us that a strong marketing strategy is essential for a successful business.  At KRT, we specialize in recruitment marketing, where we apply these “golden rules” to create a strong brand that candidates will gravitate to. Below are the 7 Golden Rules with a KRT twist:

1. Highlight your uniqueness – Avoid talking about what it is you do. Focus more on what makes your services unique compared to your competitors. Instead of discussing what you offer, talk about how you offer it. You might have a special way of presenting clients’ accounts or a system of assessing their advertising needs. At KRT, we take an organized and creative approach that shows our clients exactly what kind of ROI they are getting from our vendors.
2. Be consistent – Once you’ve presented your unique selling proposition (above), apply it! Don’t be tempted to leave old messages out there. New prospects can come to you from all kinds of ways – business card, website, phone call, newsletter, blog, print, online ads and so on.
3. Keep it simple – Don’t complicate things. You may understand the intricate workings of your service, but is this something that is going to interest your audience? Candidates are more inclined to read your ad if it is clear and concise. Wordy explanations and flowery writing will lose their attention before you can get your point across. Don’t be afraid to be creative though!
4. Branding – When branding your business, how can you create a look that is unique? Choose a color or two are different from the others and which will form the basis of your web design or logo. This will help ensure stand out from the competition. At KRT, we have a creative team that can meet all of your branding needs!
5. Keep it real – Build your brand from a position of truth. Don’t offer the moon if you can’t operate a space ship!
6. SEO – Learn the secrets of using keywords to get your business higher on search engine listings. Knowing how to use keywords to generate more hits on your website will reel in the candidates who are looking for what you are offering. Our team at KRT is well-versed in SEO marketing.
7. Blogging for Gold – Create a blog and write about your market. This can be linked to your business home page as well. Effective blogging will help you generate more hits for your business.

If you need help crafting a recruitment strategy for your company, let us be your lucky charm! Contact a KRT representative at info@krtmarketing.com.

Today’s media platforms are ever-changing and improving their tools to assist your recruitment teams in “catching” the most QUALIFIED applicants.  Just like choosing a great ball team, you only want the “best of the best” to come to the tryouts or be screened for the application process.

We at KRT think that setting up trainings for your team is essential for a great recruiting season!

LINKEDIN
Depending up your level of comfort, LinkedIn has training for everyone! From showcasing your employment brand, to spicing up your recruiter profiles to turning your team into a recruitment machine, LinkedIn has the training to get your staff into pitch perfect shape! http://help.linkedin.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/530

INDEED
If you weren’t aware that you could get FREE access to Military personnel resumes, or any resumes in Canada or India, you haven’t been through a recent Indeed training. What are you waiting for? You’ll hit one out of the park with this training session. http://www.indeed.com/resumes

SOCIAL MEDIA  
Wondering how to hit a home run with your Social Media recruitment plan? Let KRT’s Social Media experts join your team as a clutch hitter and train your team to hit one out of the park!

Contact KRT today to get you recruitment team ready to have a winning season!

With football season being over, and basketball entering the second half of the season, my favorite sport is returning with spring training kicking off last weekend in Arizona and Florida.  So, how can baseball teams “recruit” fans back to enjoying America’s greatest past time?

The Brewers have one of the more interesting 2013 campaigns for MLB. They count down the days until opening day (April 1) by recruiting fans to share in the excitement and encouraging them to like the posts or share the photos with their friends or followers.  Why did this campaign impress me?  It was the creativity of the photos, as well as the number of likes and shares that posts received as well as the hashtag (#SeeUApril1) being utilized on Twitter by their fans!

How do you recruit your fans to like, share or retweet posts about your company? Share with us your take on this social media campaign or any others that have caught your eye.

They used another hometown team’s jersey in the countdown (day 85), by including a Green Bay Packers jersey and a congratulations message.

Super Bowl was on Sunday, Feb. 3, so the Brewers counted down (day 57) by showing a photo of a bean dip, which some folks enjoy during the big game!

Valentine’s Day was February 14, but on the day before, they incorporated baseball messages on candy hearts.

Also this is not an in-depth review of the tools, it’s just a list of social media and productivity tools that we hope you’ll find useful. Here is today’s line-up:

Bottlenose 
A nifty search engine that provides live social intelligence after crawling all the major social networks. You can, in real time, find out what’s trending, monitor, analyze, target and engage. You can setup several accounts and post updates, replies etc…  And yes! The light version is free! The Pro version is coming soon.

Skitch
This is a free app that makes it really easy for you to capture a graphic and a portion of your screens and edit it. You can draw attention to pictures using their annotation and markup feature. You also have the option to include shapes, arrows and text. Once you are done, you can drag new graphics to presentations, emails, documents or export to several file formats. You’ll be totally hooked on this one.

Quozio
This handy and free tool allows you to create an image out of text. Think of that perfect quote you want to post on Pinterest . It gives you different fonts, backgrounds and filters. It also comes with a bookmarklet option, which makes it easy for you to create that image while browsing the internet.

Awe.sm 
We just started using this at KRT Marketing <http://krtmarketing.com>. It’s a great social media campaign tracking tool that provides you a way to create campaigns, use tags, schedule & post content and track their performance per social channel (it also integrates with Google Analytics & WordPress). You can customize the awe.sm analytics dashboard so you can see the data in many different ways. They offer a 30-day free trial.

High in my to-try list are:

LikeAlyzer
Description from their website: “It helps you to measure and analyze the potential and success rate of your Facebook Pages. It allows you to explore all the possibilities of your presence by evaluating your activity and dialogues to ensure your success on the most popular social network in the world.” It also provides you with detailed information and explanation of identified issues and tips on how to address them.

SocialCrawlytics
This is also a free tool to analyze the popularity of content on a given website. This means you can assess the ‘social’ performance of the competition. You get a dashboard with detailed information on where and how often content is shared. If this tool works well, it may help publishers everywhere to determine the type of content to publish.

We are always searching for new social media tools & productivity apps to make our lives easier and provide extra value for our clients. We test several tools still in beta and hope one day to find the perfect tool or app.

Have you used these tools and apps? What are your thoughts? Have another cool tool? We’d love to hear from you. Leave us a comment below.